The T65 (聯勤 Type 65) is a

rifle A rifle is a long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting, with a barrel that has a helical pattern of grooves ( rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus on accuracy, rifles are typically designed to be held with ...

developed and manufactured by the Combined Logistics Command of the

Republic of China Armed Forces The Republic of China Armed Forces (ROC Armed Forces) are the armed forces of the Republic of China (ROC), once based in mainland China and currently in its remaining jurisdictions which include the islands of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

. Originally patterned after the

Armalite AR-18 The ArmaLite AR-18 is a gas-operated assault rifle chambered for 5.56×45mm NATO ammunition. The AR-18 was designed at ArmaLite in California by Arthur Miller, Eugene Stoner, George Sullivan, and Charles Dorchester in 1963 as an alternative ...

that has a short-stroke gas system, the prototype unveiled in 1975 showed a rifle that is heavily influenced by the

AR-15 An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporation d ...

family of rifles, albeit with modified

iron sights Iron sights are a system of physical alignment markers (usually made of metallic material) used as a sighting device to assist the accurate aiming of ranged weapons (such as a firearm, airgun, crossbow or even compound bow), or less commonly ...

, a reshaped stock, and redesigned handguards. The designated number '65' refers to the Year 65 of

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast ...

(1976), the year the rifle's design was finalized. Upgraded versions were designated the Type 65K2 and Type 65K3. The T65 series served as the standard issue weapon for front-line usage of the

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

and the

marine corps Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

until being replaced by the follow-on T91 in the early 2000s. T65 rifles are currently used by the Army Reserves, Army Basic Training Centers, Air Force and the

National Police Agency National Police may refer to the national police forces of several countries: *Afghanistan: Afghan National Police *Haiti: Haitian National Police *Colombia: National Police of Colombia *Cuba: Cuban National Police *East Timor: National Police of E ...

History

The T65 assault rifle was developed at the Taiwan State Arsenal to replace the obsolete 7.62mm M14 rifles imported from the United States. Reports on the original T65 rifle suggested that it performed poorly, but was later improved and became the T65K2 (also referred to as the T68). Later on, a T86 carbine was developed, very similar in appearance to the US-made M4 carbine although using the piston-type gas action of T65. The last weapon in the series is the T91 carbine, which can be described as a T86 with the carrying handle replaced by a Picatinny-type accessory rail. The T65 assault rifle is a gas operated,

select fire Selective fire is the capability of a weapon to be adjusted to fire in semi-automatic, fully automatic, and/or burst mode. The modes are chosen by means of a selector switch, which varies depending on the weapon's design. Some selective-fire we ...

rifle. It uses an AR-15 style two-part aluminum receiver and similar rotating bolt action, although the gas system is a short-stroke gas piston, compared with the AR-15's direct gas impingement system. The piston is located above the barrel and concealed within the handguards. The T65 design replaced the carrying handle of M16 pattern rifles with a rear sight block. The carrying handle returned with the T65K2 (but was removable on the T91 carbine). The T65 uses magazines compatible with AR-15 pattern rifles. The T65 assault rifle is the first 5.56×45mm NATO rifle adopted by the Taiwanese military, with the project starting in 1968. The design sought to improve the AR-15 design by replacing the

direct impingement Direct impingement is a type of gas operation for a firearm that directs gas from a fired cartridge indirectly (through the barrel, through a gas block, and then through a gas tube) into the bolt carrier or slide assembly to cycle the action. Fir ...

system with a short stroke gas piston, improving the reliability of the rifle. The T65 has a fire selector with three positions: safe, semiautomatic and fully automatic. It takes standard STANAG magazines, and the piston has its own spring recovery. After firing the gas following the bullet pushes the piston towards the receiver, it connects with the front of the bolt carrier, and the bolt carrier is driven back by inertia. The bolt itself is near identical to an AR-15.

Variants

* T65 * T65K1 * T65K2 **T65K2 Carbine * T65K3

Users

* * * * * : Used by Haitian police. * * * * * * Former Rifle of the defunct

Panama Defense Forces The Panama Defense Forces ( es, Fuerzas de Defensa de Panamá; FFDD) and formerly the National Guard of Panama, were the armed forces of the Republic of Panama. It was created in 1983 led by General Manuel Antonio Noriega and his general staff. ...

* *

References

External links

Modern Firearms - T65, T86 and T91 assault rifle (Taiwan)
{{ArmaLite AR-10 derivatives 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifles Short stroke piston firearms Firearms of the Republic of China ArmaLite AR-10 derivatives AR-15 style rifles Weapons and ammunition introduced in 1976

History

Variants

Users

See also

References

External links